Police search for man who stabbed driver in road-rage fight

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CHULA VISTA, Calif. - Authorities asked the public Thursday for help in identifying an assailant who stabbed a motorist during a South Bay traffic dispute.

The events that led to the assault began about 2 p.m. last Saturday, when the victim beeped his horn at an inattentive driver in front of him to alert her that a traffic light had turned green, according to Chula Vista police.

Apparently angered by the honk, the woman pulled alongside the man and yelled at him as they proceeded down the road. She then began closely tailing his car, getting so close at times that he couldn't see her front bumper in his rear-view mirror, according to Capt. Fritz Reber.

At J Street and Second Avenue, both drivers pulled to a stop, got out of their vehicles along with their passengers and confronted each other in the street, he said.

As several witnesses recorded the face-off with their cellphones, a teenage boy or young man who had been riding in the woman's car approached the male motorist and stabbed him in the chest, then fled along with his cohorts.

Medics took the victim to a hospital, where he was admitted and remained for three days before being discharged, Reber said.

The assailant was described as a roughly 5-foot-6-inch, 140-pound teenage boy or young man of Hispanic or Middle Eastern descent, with bushy short black hair and possibly a mustache. He was wearing white coveralls at the time of the assault.

The woman who confronted the victim is white, has long dark hair and appears to be in her late teens or early 20s. She was driving a light-gray 2003 Hyundai two-door sedan, Reber said.

Police also are looking for a man who joined in the road-rage dispute, either walking over from the roadside or getting out of a third vehicle. He was described as a roughly 5-foot-11-inch, 220-pound Latino in his early to mid- 20s, with a shaved or bald head.

Anyone with information about the incident was asked to call San Diego County Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477 or contact the agency online at sdcrimestoppers.org. Tipsters may remain anonymous and could be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000.